This article is part of Football FanCast’s Pundit View series, which provides opinion and analysis on recent quotes from journalists, pundits, players and managers…
Alisson has told The Telegraph that Napoli made a bid for him in 2018.
What’s the story?
Last summer, Liverpool parted with £67m to secure the services of the 28-year-old, making him the most expensive goalkeeper in the world at the time in the process.
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However, it could have all been so very different. The Brazil international explained: “Napoli tried to bid for me. The president came to me, but if I went to Naples from Roma, I was going to put myself in a tough situation in Italy.
“It’s not an official derby, but there’s a big rivalry between the teams. I admire Napoli a lot, they have a top squad and it’s always hard to play against them, especially when they are at home.
“But I was committed to joining Liverpool.”
The most important signing
Virgil van Dijk has been mentioned as Jurgen Klopp’s best signing since joining in January last year. He has done a fantastic job, of course, and his contention for the Ballon d’Or shows just how good he is. But Alisson’s impact is perhaps even greater.
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You only have to look at the Champions League final in 2018 to understand how much a new goalkeeper was needed. Against Real Madrid, the Reds may have come away with the trophy had it not been for Loris Karius between the sticks. The former Mainz man, who is currently on loan at Besiktas, made two horrific blunders, gifting the match to Los Merengues.
In the 2017/18 season, Liverpool had Karius and Simon Mignolet as their two goalkeepers in the Premier League, with them starting 19 games apiece. The former managed a 68.9% save percentage, whilst the latter managed just 60.7%. They did keep 17 clean sheets between them and conceded 38 goals, but Alisson’s arrival from AS Roma took the Anfield outfit to the next level. Last term, he started all 38 matches, and kept a huge 21 clean sheets. With him between the sticks, the Reds shipped just 22 goals, and he managed a save percentage of 77.8%.
The stats tell the story. His impact was massive, and although Liverpool were clearly good before he arrived, his performances have taken them to the very top. They can count their lucky stars that the now £72m-valued man – as per Transfermarkt – chose Merseyside over Naples.
Meanwhile, Steven Gerrard could help Liverpool sign two promising youngsters.
